Joel Rubin

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We need practical solutions in Gaza. Hamas needs to surrender and depart. Trump team must get serious on negotiations. And the UN needs to move the aid that’s already in Gaza, approved by Israel and wasting away.

@msnbcreports.msnbc.com

Gaza is starving. Is a ceasefire in jeopardy after the U.S. withdrew from talks early? Israel announced it would allow aid drops to Palestinians in Gaza to resume as the U.S. left ceasefire talks early this week. Former Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for House Affairs Joel Rubin jo...

Israel announced it would allow aid drops to Palestinians in Gaza to resume. Former Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for House Affairs @joelmrubin.bsky.social joins Erielle Reshef to break down the latest news out of the Middle East.

www.msnbc.com/weekends-wit...

LIVE SOON: The Briefing Book’s Foreign Policy Friday with Joel Rubin and JoJoFromJerz Starting Jul 25 at 5:00 PM EDT

Join me & @jojofromjerz.bsky.social LIVE on Substack TODAY at 5PM Eastern for our weekly “Foreign Policy Friday” chat! It’ll be a lively one, as always!

open.substack.com/live-stream/45217

Democrats need moral courage right now in confronting antisemitism.

We’re in a moment of reckoning - if leadership fails to meet it with with clarity & courage, we may not just lose the Jewish vote, but the soul of our party as well.

More on The Briefing Book.

joelrubin.substack.com

Talking to the other Podcast Episode · Can We Please Talk? · 07/21/2025 · 58m

3 Netanyahu visits, no results; Rubio's absent leadership; Trump finally realizes Putin "is a liar & dangerous human," but stalls on sanctions bill in Congress. All this and more in my convo on Can We Please Talk!

podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/talking-to-the-other-side/id1539333906?i=1000718221603

A devastating one-two punch to American power: State Dept. fired 1,300 diplomats while Congress slashed billions in foreign aid. This isn't reform - it's self-sabotage. Our credibility is shot, allies are nervous, adversaries are cheering.

joelrubin.substack.com/p/a-dark-week-for-american-power

Trump Adopts Joe Biden’s Ukraine Playbook (For Now) My OpEd for "National Security Journal"

joelrubin.substack.com/p/trump-adopts-joe-bidens-ukraine-playbook

Trump's new Ukraine policy sure looks a lot like Biden's old playbook - sustained military support, economic pressure, diplomatic engagement.

A welcome shift, but leadership delayed is leadership denied. Follow through is everything now.

More in my NatSec Journal OpEd, shared on TheBriefingBook.

Yesterday’s bloodletting of State Dept. employees was a dark day for American diplomacy.

"Streamlining" DOS by cutting 15% of staff is laughable.

You don't make an organization more effective by gutting deep subject matter experts in energy, climate, human rights, democracy.

@cnn.com

Devastating Texas floods show dangerous cost of cutting inherently governmental functions.

DOGE cuts FEMA weather watchers because they "don't earn money." Meanwhile, State Dept. eliminates climate policy office.

If we don't reverse course, the toll in money and lives will be catastrophic.

Despite Trump’s appeasement, Putin isn’t biting on renewed US-Russia relations - he wants Ukraine and is playing for keeps.

It’s past time for Trump to decide whose side he’s on. There’s no middle ground. No clever third option.

joelrubin.substack.com/p/trumps-russia-policy-is-a-weak-disaster

Hi everyone! I’ll be joining @msnbcreports.msnbc.com this morning at around 10:30am Eastern to discuss the latest on Ukraine and Russia with Alex Witt! I hope that you can tune in!

Embarassing chaos at the Pentagon. Ukraine military aid was withheld and apparently President Trump didn't know this. Whoops for the Pentagon staffer who pushed that one! Does Trump even know about the decisions being made there?

One Nobel Peace Prize nomination and Trump abandons decades of bipartisan U.S. policy supporting a two-state solution — essentially giving Netanyahu free rein in Gaza.

Bibi really knows how to play Trump.

@msnbcreports.msnbc.com @msnbc.com

Going LIVE w/ Ana Cabrera on @msnbc.com TODAY 11AM EST to weigh in on Netanyahu’s visit to Washington. What does it mean for the Gaza war and Middle East diplomacy?

Join us for real-time analysis & insights!

If there's to be a ceasefire between Israel & Hamas, it must be more than just a pause. It must be the start of a transformation.

It's time for a new approach - one that dares to imagine peace, and fights just as hard to make it real.

More analysis on The Briefing Book. joelrubin.substack.com

Days after NATO allies commit to 5% GDP on defense, Trump responds by shifting toward Putin & weakening Ukraine.

On July 4th, we celebrate independence and sovereignty. It's time to live up to our founding promise. The freedom of our allies is worth defending.

joelrubin.substack.com

It’s cruel irony that on Independence Day, we're allowing an ally to be squeezed by an imperialist nation.

Russia hits Ukraine harder & Pentagon responds by halting weapons shipments to our ally.

Trump's wants Ukraine to "cry uncle" - they won't.

USAID's Demise Was Long A GOP Fantasy Now It's Our Global Nightmare

Gutting USAID is the endpoint of a long ideological crusade rooted in a fundamental misunderstanding of American power.

It’s not just shortsighted. It’s dangerous.

We must find new ways to support America's foreign aid infrastructure before it’s too late.

joelrubin.substack.com

Trade negotiations that implode on a whim. Military strikes followed by bragging, not bargaining. Universities bullied for political gain.

Trump has replaced policy with performance, planning with posturing & credibility with chaos.

joelrubin.substack.com/p/icymi-my-cnn-newsnight-appearance

Thomas Jefferson must be rolling in his grave.

He founded American liberty and the institution that President Trump is now strong arming as if he's a modern day king.

Trump is forcing a state institution to bend the knee to the President. This is the opposite of liberty.

Trump is blowing up trade negotiations with Canada over a digital sales tax because it benefits big tech billionaires. It makes no sense to make an enemy out of an ally, and all we’re getting on trade is TACO Trump.

@cnn.com

The debate around the Iran strikes is toxic. Rather than gloat, Trump needs to pull back and let his team lock in the win diplomatically.

Ceasefire is holding, regional dynamics shifting- there’s momentum for peace.

Enjoyed a dynamic discussion tonight w/ Abby Phillip & guests on @cnn.com

TONIGHT: I'm on CNN at 10pm EDT Watch us at Abby Phillip's political table

It’s been a wild two weeks: 33 TV hits, 442 media mentions, 2 radio hits, 5 print articles, 9 substack posts -reaching an estimated 1.29 BILLION people. wow!

Thank you following along as we make sense of this chaotic world together.

Join me LIVE TONIGHT on @cnn w/ Abby Phillip - 10PM EST!

Keeping an eye on internal party dynamics in the Senate this week w/ a potential vote on The War Powers Resolution led by Senator Tim Kaine.

This kind of vote will be extremely revealing about the path forward regarding Middle East policy for Democrats.

@cnn.com @audiecornish.bsky.social

Link to New Post on The Briefing Book:

joelrubin.substack.com/p/the-israel...

The Israel-Iran Ceasefire Holds. For Now. Here's How To Make It Last.

The Israel-Iran ceasefire won't hold itself.

We need to supercharge diplomacy, resist regime change fantasies, and get Congress engaged.

Then maybe we'll look back at this moment as a turning point in ending Iran's nuclear program and further war.

More on The Briefing Book. Link below 👇

#NATO summit timing critical. Iran is weakened. Now is the time to supercharge diplomacy and lock in gains. We need a bigger process - not just a ceasefire.

Will Trump leverage the moment?

@anacabrera.bsky.social @msnbcreports.msnbc.com